And If I Were to Fall
by Tsuchi
Summary: New teammates. Which meant that his old teammates had been given up for dead... well, of course they had. One of them was dead, and the other was even deader. If ‘deader’ is a word, which he doesn’t think it is. AU postWave Country arc. Now with chapter 2
1. And if I were to fall

And If I Were To Fall

By: Tsuchi

Fandom: Naruto

Pairings: None

Warnings: mentions of character death, TWT, AU

Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine. It never was. If it was, you can be sure there'd be a lot more smut. And Lee. Because I like Lee.

Author's Note: **Very Important! Please read!**Okay, now that I've got your attention, there are a few things you have to know: first, this is an AU. Sakura was not Naruto and Sasuke's teammate. In this, she was actually a year behind them. Also in this, Orochimaru/Suna did not attack at the chuunin exams. In fact, they weren't even there. Got that?

Third, this is based off an AMV I saw on Youtube. I did not make the AMV. In fact, the person who's account it was posted on didn't even make it. The original is at though you can watch it more easily at: www. youtube. com/ watch? vzMkz-5l-Qs

In any case, I didn't ask permission to write this fic, and unless I can find who actually made it, I'm not going to, either. In any case, I think that's all the changes I made.

Finally, this is a one shot. I might continue it if I get positive feedback, but at the moment, I'm not planning on it.

Pain, suffering, anguish. He felt like they were carved into his skin, bloody and raw. It had felt that way for the past months.

It felt like he was a murderer; only worse, because no one blamed him.

He wasn't sure if it would be better if they yelled and screamed, and tried to lock him away. He was pretty sure that it would be easier than this: the conversations gone quiet, the sidelong glances, the way no one, not even the guys wanted to stay with him for more than a few minutes.

He guessed he could understand those: at least this time he knew what they were about. And to be honest, he wouldn't want to be with himself for more than a few minutes, either. He was a murderer.

He'd overheard once someone say they were glad they weren't him. He wished he could say the same.

After all, how many shinobi lost both their teammates in one go? How many had a teacher who refused to teach them? How many left the bandages on their face even long after the wounds had healed?

Not very fucking many. So he changed his own mental track. He'd been doing that a lot lately.

Iruka had called him here. 'Here' being the Academy, and 'called' being 'dragged kicking and screaming', or as close as Naruto would ever get again. Too many memories.

He'd said something about teammates, which was why Naruto had needed to be dragged. Because he knew this day would come. He knew that this day would happen, and he'd dreaded it.

_New_ teammates. Which meant that his old teammates had been given up for dead (well, of course they had. One of them _was_ dead, and the other was even deader. If 'deader' is a word, which he doesn't think it is).

But this made it real. They weren't just going to pop in to his apartment with a smile and a smirk respectively, and yell "surprise!" or rather, "Surprise!" and "surprise, moron"

Not that he'd thought they would. Practical jokes were his style, not theirs.

But he'd hoped that maybe, somewhere out there, was a body that belonged to him, and all he needed was for Kakashi to break the illusion some mist nin had put on him, end the nightmare, and let him swamp his teammates (even Sasuke) in hugs.

But that wasn't going to happen. He'd tried it all already. He'd studied breaking genjutsu until he had to be hospitalized (more whispers and sidelong looks). He'd tried everything, dispersing and gathering his chakra, whispering in the dead of night for someone to force chakra into him. Anyone. Because this couldn't be real.

He stared at the desk, but looked up as the door opened. Iruka stood there, and he gave his teacher a little smile. "Hey, Iruka," he muttered. "New teammates, huh?"

Iruka's smile was a little more pained. "It had to happen, Naruto. You can't work in a one man cell."

"Kakashi did," Naruto answered back, though he knew – like he knew that Iruka would explain again – why.

"Hatake san," Iruka's voice was very, very stiff. "was already a jounin by the time his teammates were killed. He was able to be switched between teams for training until the ANBU exams. You're still genin, Naruto. You need teammates."

"I know," he answered, and plastered a smile on his face. "Just let me get ready, Iruka sensei."

Iruka smiled. Maybe he knew what Naruto was planning, or maybe he thought that Naruto was going to try to let go for good. Either way, he returned to the doorway, and held still there for a few minutes. "I'll be right back, Naruto. Don't go anywhere, or I'll have the ANBU come after you," he joked, and left.

"I don't doubt it," Naruto muttered. He was pretty sure the ANBU had doubled their guard on him. He'd had a feeling like he was being watched since what had happened to his team had become public knowledge. Or maybe it was just the villagers. They'd always watched him more closely than ANBU anyway.

Finally, he was readied, and he sat – a different desk, this one in full view of the door – waiting for the newly graduated cadet – the last one after the genin exams this year – and one of the genin from last year. He didn't know which one: he hadn't bothered to ask Iruka, and the man hadn't volunteered the information.

The first he saw was a pink head, before that same head of hair was covered with chalkboard dust, and a brush. Laughter (so bitter, and hurting, not that he'd ever let anyone hear that) bubbled up in his throat, and he clutched at his stomach.

"You-" he laughed. "You are so-" one trembling hand pointed in the door's direction, and Naruto fell off the chair. "Stupid! Come on, how did you _not_ see that chalk brush?" He gasped for breath.

A hand reached for his shirt, and he let it grab hold. So abruptly that he might have choked (if he hadn't been ready), he was hauled up to face angry green eyes that were surrounded by a pink face and equally pink hair.

If he looked closely – which he didn't – he could see fires flaring in those eyes. But he didn't look and he didn't see.

"You're Naruto?" was the menacing, female voice.

"Yup!" he answered cheerfully. _'Beware women'_, his teammate had always said_, 'you never know when one of them will be able to beat the crap out of you_'. It had been true, too. Naruto hadn't even suspected. Neither had Sasuke.

"And you're my new teammate?" she asked dangerously.

"Yup!" he answered, in the same tone of voice as before, even though the word 'teammate' made his heart ache a little. He had his teammates. Two of them. They were just dead, that was all. Just a little dead.

"You're an…" she paused, and then her fist slammed down into his head. "IDIOT!"

He let his body collapse under the blow, letting the girl think that her strength had knocked him out of her grip. It was a pretty good technique, one that his teammate had shown him.

"Haruno san!" Iruka's voice reprimanded. He was standing by the door again. _Just getting ready to leave_, Naruto wondered, _or just coming in?_ It wasn't like him not to pay attention. Well, it had been, but it wasn't, not anymore. Not without his… his teammates, and his best friends. He wasn't safe anywhere anymore.

"Ah!" the girl exclaimed. "I'm sorry, sir!" No apology for him, Naruto noted. Oh well, it wouldn't have won her any points anyway.

When he finally opened his eyes, and stood, brushing the dirt off, the Girl was apologizing profusely to Iruka sensei, who wasn't even paying attention, instead watching Naruto with pursed lips, and the Other One – his other new 'teammate' – was leaning against the wall in such a Sasuke-like pose that Naruto felt his eyes water briefly.

But it wasn't Sasuke. The collar was too high, and the sunglasses were no where near Sasuke's style. Naruto thought he remembered the guy from the Academy, and maybe the chuunin exams: Aburamen? Aburami? Something Shimo. Maybe. Or was it Shino?

Well, Naruto didn't really care.

"Ne, ne, Iruka sensei!" he called out, far too loud for the small room. "Are these my teammates?" he asked, unnecessarily. Of course they were.

"Yes, Naruto," Iruka gave him a concerned glance. "They are. These are Haruno Sakura – she just graduated from the Academy this year, and Aburame Shino, who I'm sure you remember from last year," he held out a hand to each, respectively.

Shino nodded, and Sakura gave him a tight little smile.

"I'll be going to get your jounin instructor now," Iruka said, "Please, Naruto, no pranks this time. She's… rather volatile."

Naruto pouted in a way that he didn't really feel. "Fine, Iruka sensei." He crossed his arms and stared at the window. He could practically hear the thoughts of the other two. From Haruno: '_this_ idiot_ is my teammate??_', and from Shino: '_what happened to his teammates?_'

Unless Shino already knew, then it might be, '_do I really want to be in this guy's team? I might be better to transfer out_'.

He scratched at the skin above his bandaged cheeks, just to remind himself that this was real. His skin hurt so badly, that he supposed it must be. You couldn't feel pain in genjutsu, could you? Didn't it break it, or something? Or was that only dreams?

Not that he really needed the reminder. He'd hurt enough in the last months that there was no way he could be under an illusion.

He stared out the window, listening to Haruno try to make small talk with Aburame, until the door opened again, and a young woman walked in. Damn. He'd meant to trap the door again. It had worked on Kakashi; who knew, it might have worked on this chick too.

The woman's hair framed her face with deep purple and flared up at the back, and her bored brown eyes scanned over them. Just like Kakashi. _Or not_, he thought, as his eyes took in her attire: a mesh body suit that stopped at her knees (with no underlying bra), a khaki trench coat into whose pockets her hands were stuffed, and an orange miniskirt.

His eyebrows shot up, and in the corner of his vision, Haruno turned red, and began spluttering.

"I'm Mitarashi Anko," she said, shortly. "_If_ you brats pass my test, I'll consider teaching you. But you do _everything_, and I mean everything I say, _when _I say it. Got it?"

Haruno managed to control herself long enough to force out a 'Hai', and Shino nodded. Naruto put on his brightest grin, and poked his chest with his thumb.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" he declared. "I'll pass any test you can hand out!" he got a raised eyebrow for his efforts, and he thought he might have picked up a 'pfft, 'depressed' my ass' for his efforts.

Finally, after staring at him for several seconds, she grinned right back. "Alright kid. I challenge you to…" she pointed a finger at him. "A drinking contest!"

Haruno spluttered again. "A drinking contest? B-but sensei… we're only twelve! We're not legally allowed to drink yet!"

Mitarashi's eye settled on her, and she shrank away. "What did I tell you Haruno? You do what I say, when I say, and you don't ask questions. Got it? _This_ is your test. If you can hold your liquor against me, I'll consider taking you on as students. And if you can _outdrink _me? I'll take you on, no questions asked."

Haruno muttered something about 'no questions asked' not being what they agreed to, but said nothing loudly enough to be considered commenting. Naruto puffed out his chest and said – loudly – that he'd drink her under the table. Shino just pushed his glasses up his nose.

"In that case," Mitarashi said, "follow me." She took them to an abandoned warehouse – with a stop at a liquor store on the way.

She made Naruto and Shino carry the bags.

"Alright!" She threw open the doors to the warehouse, and momentarily broke out into choked coughs as the dust swirled and whirled around her, coating her in a layer of grime.

"Alright," she began again when her coughs had subsided. "This is the place. We're going to play a little game I like to call 'Try to lie'. I'm going to ask you questions, and you're going to answer them. You can answer any way you want: true, false, I don't care. _But_!" She spun around to look at them. "If I catch you lying, you're out. That's it. No second chances."

Having taken Kakashi's test, Mitarashi's was pretty dull. It was so easy to pass: just keep drinking and tell the absolute truth. Unless… unless she asked about his teammates. Or why Kakashi wouldn't teach him anymore. Or why they were in Wave County in the first place. Or about the Kyuubi. He wasn't supposed to talk about that.

The possibilities were endless. There were a thousand questions that he couldn't tell the truth about. So many things he had to lie about. And he'd be drinking. And he didn't know how much she already knew. This test was impossible.

Unless… her test was like Kakashi's. Maybe they had to back each other's stories up. Even when they had no idea what was true and what wasn't. If Mitarashi didn't look convinced, they had to… what? Jump in, and save the other person's ass?

Well, you can't have a one man cell. You can't have a three man or a two man cell either. It has to be four man, when it comes to genin: three genin and a jounin.

Damn. And these people, Haruno, and Aburame. They didn't deserve to have to go back to the academy, just because _he _didn't want to be here.

So when Mitarashi asked Shino about why he wore glasses all the time, and Shino answered 'no reason', Naruto jumped in with a story – complete with 'drunken' laughter and giggles – about how he and Kiba had once stolen Shino's sun glasses, and found that his eyes were a light, light purple. Lavender, almost. Shino muttered that he'd never lived it down.

Haruno, not catching on, giggled – truly drunkenly – and demanded to see. Mitarashi turned on her before she could snatch the glasses from Shino's head (not that there was much chance) with a question about Haruno's hair, and whether it was dyed or not.

Haruno giggled that it wasn't. She'd gotten it from… somebody in her family. And then Mitarashi turned to Naruto again. He could tell from the look on her face that this one wasn't going to be easy like the rest.

"What's under those bandages?" Bingo. Money shot, right there.

"Scratches," he answered. Haruno crawled over to him.

"How bad are they?" she asked, all full of sympathy. "Can I see?" Her hands reached for his cheeks, but he leaned away as far he could.

"Sakura," Shino broke in. "If you uncover them, they'll never heal," he answered, and somehow, Naruto thought that Shino might understand that the bandages covered unbroken skin. Just like Naruto knew that whatever was under Shino's glasses – be they bugs, eyes, or empty holes – didn't matter, because it wasn't anyone's business, what was under them.

"What happened to your first teammates?" Mitarashi asked, once Haruno had been resituated on the other side of Shino.

_The truth_, he thought, _the absolute truth._ "They're dead," he said, flatly. _But no more than that._

She left it at that. At least, she did until Haruno was a snoring mass to the left, and Shino had propped himself against the wall, hand still wrapped around his bottle of fifty proof vodka.

"So what really happened to your teammates?" she slurred at him, and he – eyes practically closing on their own – answered back.

"Tol' you," he slurred back. "Thur dea'" he felt a tear slide down his cheek. "One of 'em wuzza traitor. Bad guy. Bad bad guy. Killed Saskei… so I killed him." More tears slid down, and he dropped the rum in his hand. The floor sent up tiny dust motes as the glass shattered.

Shattered like his heart… no, like Haku's heart when he'd pulled it out of his chest. Shattered like Sasuke's eyes when he'd asked Naruto to kill Itachi for him. Shattered like Kakashi's pretense of 'teacher' once Sasuke was gone. Shattered like Naruto when he was left alone.

"Left alone, huh?" Anko asked. Naruto didn't bother to reply. "Know something about that myself." Suddenly, she sounded a lot less drunk. "Teacher abandoned me in another country."

Naruto laughed bitterly. "Yeah. Kakashi sensei left too. Didn' have 'is precious Sasuke, an' I wasn't good 'nough, so he jus' said 'fuck off'."

He told her a lot more. Everything, really. How Haku had come to Konoha, and befriended Naruto when no one else would. How they were two outsiders, but _together_ on the outside, at least.

And how Haku had supported him asking for the C-class mission, and later, when he hadn't wanted to turn back. How Haku had turned out to be a spy for a missing nin: his companion, and his tool. How Sasuke had figured it out – Haku's disappearance, just when the hunter nin showed up, how he'd mastered tree walking without breaking a sweat (like he'd already mastered it), how, even though his scores were mediocre, his actual skills were practically second nature.

How Haku had left them, to rejoin his 'master', Zabuza. How Sasuke had died, fighting his own teammate, and how Naruto had died too – just on the inside – doing the same. Haku had been his only friend. But Haku was a traitor. He had been all along. Just a spy for Zabuza.

Somewhere in there, Anko had wrapped her arms around him, with a growled 'you better appreciate this, kid'. And somewhere his tears had dried up. And somewhere, he whispered for someone to push chakra into him, because he'd really like to wake up now, and she'd held him tighter, with a 'you can't wake up, kid. You're already awake'.

And somewhere in there, he passed out, and woke up in the warehouse, alone, with a vodka label fluttering on his chest. It had been peeled off a bottle, which he could see nearby. Written on the back, in hard, scratchy script was 'Kid, you pass. Mitarashi'.


	2. Could I still hold you up?

Could I Still Hold You Up?

By: Tsuchi

Fandom: Naruto

Pairings: None

Warnings: mentions of character death, TWT, AU

Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine. It never was. If it was, you can be sure there'd be a lot more smut. And Lee. Because I like Lee.

Author's Note: **Very Important! Please read!**

Okay, now that I've got your attention, there are a few things you have to know: first, this is an AU. Sakura was not Naruto and Sasuke's teammate. In this, she was actually a year behind them. Also in this, Orochimaru/Suna did not attack at the chuunin exams. In fact, they weren't even there. Got that?

Third, this is based off an AMV I saw on Youtube. I did not make the AMV. In fact, the person who's account it was posted on didn't even make it. The original is at though you can watch it more easily at: www. youtube. com/ watch? vzMkz-5l-Qs. In any case, I didn't ask permission to write this fic, and unless I can find who actually made it, I'm not going to, either. In any case, I think that's all the changes I made.

Finally, I mentioned in the last fic that if I got positive reviews, I'd write a sequel. I got _overwhelmingly _good reviews (and I thank you all, I really do), so here it is. I'm actually planning out two more, but don't think I don't need reviews for this one as well. I have no been so inspired to write since I saw that so many of you like it. Oh, and FreeTheKyuubi, you were right, I was already planning a sequel, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to bother writing it. (Reviews rock!). Finally, this is not a one shot, though the continuation of _And If I Were To Fall._

_And if I were to fall,_

_Could I still hold you up?_

_It's just so dark down here_

_But I think I'm strong enough_

_Mitarashi Anko,_ Sakura thought as she woke with a hangover the size of the Hokage monument, _is a horrible teacher_. She groaned, levering herself out of bed – only to close the blinds, and go back to sleep.

When she awoke again, the thought was still present in her head, as she still had a headache, and was fairly certain she was late for whatever meeting the teacher had set up – not that Mitarashi-sensei had ever told them where, or when such a meeting would take place. If she had, Sakura couldn't remember it.

There were voices downstairs, though the only ones she could identify were her parents'. The third… sounded familiar, but she couldn't place it. As she dressed, wearily, in her usual red dress, and pulled the zipper between her – admittedly small – breasts, it came back to her.

'_What did I tell you Haruno?_': the same voice had said those words. Mitarashi Anko. Sakura momentarily cursed herself for not being able to remember her own teacher's voice. She'd never had that problem before. Of course, she'd never gotten drunk before, either. _Mitarashi-sensei is a horrible teacher_.

She went to the stairs, wondering what her parents and her teacher could be talking about, and paused at the top step.

"… want to see me about?" Her teacher asked, voice calm and carefree.

"It's about your… test. We were given to understand that every teacher tests their student, but," her father paused.

"But you feel it was inappropriate?" Anko finished.

_Of course it was_, Sakura thought angrily.

"Yes," her mother answered, tense and just as angry as Sakura felt. "Our daughter is no where near old enough to be drinking, much less getting roaring drunk and staying out to all hours of the morning."

"Your daughter," Anko answered, "is old enough to kill someone, if it's necessary for the safety of the village. How is it that she's old enough to drive a kunai through someone's chest, but has to check in with her parents if she's going to stay out past sundown?"

There was an uncomfortable pause. Something in Sakura agreed with her teacher.

"We don't think she's old enough to kill, either," her father eventually said.

"Then why's she wearing a Konoha forehead protector?" Anko asked, just as casually as before.

"She's still a genin," her mother protested.

"So?" Anko asked. "Genin still have to kill people. One of my other students has already stopped two traitors from betraying Konoha's secrets to the enemy, and one of them was his own teammate."

"That's very good for him," her mothers voice was carefully neutral. "But it – and the possibility of… there being that kind of necessity – is not the issue. We don't believe our daughter should be drinking."

Anko said nothing for a moment. "You two are both civilians, right?"

"Yes, we are," her father acknowledged.

"Why did you put her in the Academy?" Anko asked.

"We felt," her mother began, "that her confidence in herself would be bolstered by the skills taught in the academy."

_And I begged on hands and knees,_ Sakura added, in her head. Now, she was wondering what exactly she'd been thinking at the time.

"I see," Anko continued. "Well, let me tell you a few things about shinobi. Most of us are addicts. It doesn't really matter what it is, just that we're addicted. I know for a fact that out of my colleagues Hatake Kakashi is addicted to pornography; Yuuhi Kurenai is addicted to heavy metal music about how the world is going to end: it's just something each and every shinobi has, to deal with the kind of stress and trauma we encounter daily, so that we can do our jobs to the best of our abilities.

"Your daughter will probably develop one by the time she reaches jounin level, and I can tell you why: Sakura has excellent chakra control, and is remarkably beautiful – despite her unfortunately sized forehead" – Sakura winced, and touched a hand to the area – "but is very low on chakra reserves. Hers are smaller than most girls her age, and even ones a year younger than her - which means, she'll be sent on low risk missions, most of which will probably be information gathering, with at least one chakra powerhouse to back her up. She's perfect for them."

"Oh?" her father prompted. Sakura wasn't sure if it was a compliment, or not.

"Yes," Anko continued. "Almost any mission she takes will involve drinking: if she wants information, the best place to get it is just after the men have gotten off work, and are going for drinks. What she will have to do, is match them drink for drink, and be able to keep up her acting skills to stay in character, _and_ steer the conversation to what she wants to hear without looking like she's doing either. To do that, she's going to need to have a high alcohol tolerance, and these kinds of missions will likely start as soon as she reaches chuunin. Now, do you still think my test was inappropriate?"

"Yes," her mother answered.

"Well I'm sorry for you then, because that's the life of a shinobi," Anko answered, and then yelled, "Haruno! We've got a meet on top of the Hokage monument in twenty minutes. Be there!"

Sakura jumped, realizing that her teacher had known she was listening in. She hurried through the rest of her preparations, pulling a brush almost roughly through her hair – foregoing the usual primping she went through, and took several minutes strapping her kunai holster to her thigh she wasn't quite used to it yet.

Finally, she dashed down the stairs, waving a cheerful goodbye to her parents. Or at least, she would have, if her father hadn't called her. "Sakura," he called, his voice deep and too calm to be anything good.

"Yeah?" she asked, warily, half suspecting what he was going to say.

"I'm not so sure about your… choice of career," he intoned, and Sakura felt both a flash of fear, and annoyance.

"Can it wait?" she asked, exasperated. "I'm going to be late!"

Her father looked as if he was going to hold her back, but her mother sighed, and put a hand on her father's arm. "Go on, dear," her mother said to her, "We'll talk about this tonight."

Sakura flashed her mother a grateful smile, and dashed off. She briefly debated over whether it might be more dignified to _walk_, but decided against it, figuring that Mitarashi-sensei would be more annoyed by her being late, than her running through the streets of Konoha.

When she arrived on top of the Hokage monument, she wasn't _quite_ late, but then, she wasn't the last to arrive. That annoying boy from yesterday, Uzumaki, wasn't here yet, and their teacher was playing a kunai and checking her watch every few seconds.

Sakura sighed, and paused to catch her breath. Shino was quietly leaning against the railing, looking just as broody, and mysterious as yesterday. Sakura thought she might be getting a crush on him.

Of course, that was what she had thought about Naruto, yesterday – though that was before she had actually met him. She wondered, briefly, what had happened to the quiet boy she had heard yesterday afternoon – before the test, when she was practicing espionage. Okay, so she'd been eavesdropping through the wall.

She could remember the serious, nearly _hurt_ voice that had asked, '_New teammates, huh?_' and Iruka had answered just as unhappily that it had to be done. That was when she thought she might end up with a crush on her teammate. He'd sounded so… in need of love. So lonely.

Of course, then he'd called her stupid, and dropped a chalk brush on her head. She self consciously lifted a hand to her hair, and blinked – and scowled – when it came away with more chalk dust from yesterday.

And then there'd been that stupid drinking contest. Gods, what had Mitarashi-sensei been _thinking_? She vaguely recalled hearing that Shino's eyes were pale purple, or pink, maybe, and trying to pull the bandages off Naruto's face.

But… someone had stopped her – '_If you uncover them, they'll never heal_'. She thought she remembered that too. And, also, '_thur dea'… one of 'em wuzza traitor. Bad guy. Bad bad guy,_'. She wasn't very sure about the second one: it came to her like she'd been dreaming at the time, and the voice hadn't sounded much like anyone she knew.

She let her thoughts drift, trying to think of who that voice could have been, until finally ('_about damn time_!' something is her growled) Naruto showed up, dragging himself up the stairs, with a scowl on his face, and bags under his eyes.

He was still wearing yesterday's clothes, and Sakura felt her nose wrinkle. What kind of hygiene was that?

"You're late," Mitarashi-sensei teased.

"Shut up, hag," Naruto snapped. "It's not my fault you left my in the warehouse, and I didn't have my alarm to wake me up, and I didn't know where we were meeting, or anything like that. I had to ask a whole bunch of people if they'd seen you guys, and do you know how many people I had to ask to find out?"

"A lot?" Mitarashi asked, face cheerfully (Sakura would have described it, if she'd been asked) evil.

"A lot," Naruto confirmed, and threw himself down into the seat with great weariness. For a moment, a brief flash of longing passed over his features, and Sakura blinked, sure that she had seen that boy whose voice she'd heard while she was… oh screw it, while she was eavesdropping. Then the expression was gone.

If she hadn't been looking, she thinks she might never have known. As it stood, she decided that however strange it may seem, that boy she thought she might come to love, and the boy lying down – nearly falling asleep again – were the same person, and that he was a person she wanted to get to know; to find that quiet boy underneath, so that she could give him what he needed.

So, after training was over – and what a strange practice that was, with six or seven or ten Narutos running around, dodging attacks from Mitarashi-sensei's snakes (some of which were occupied with driving off the swarm of bugs around the teacher), and Sakura basically watching, in awe of her teammates' skills – she asked him to dinner at one of the better (and more expensive) restaurants in town.

Actually she asked all her teammates, and Mitarashi-sensei, since it would be rude not to. Her teacher declined, saying she had an appointment with a man named Jack Daniels – a strange name, she thought – but Shino agreed.

Naruto refused. He said he had somewhere to be, but wouldn't say where. _Alright, _she thought, _I'll try again later. _

Three weeks of training later, Sakura was getting annoyed. If he didn't have anywhere to be – even a place name and a person name would do – then why wouldn't he come have dinner with his team mates?

"What is your problem?" she snapped, finally giving in to that little voice inside her that had been yelling the same thing since the third refusal. "What's wrong with having a little team bonding? Are you our team mate or not?"

Naruto stared at her hard for a long moment, and when he spoke his voice was tremulous and strained, and his eyes glimmered suspiciously. "We are _not_ team mates," he forced out through ground teeth.

Sakura spluttered for a few seconds, and watched her team mate walk away. Rage welled up in her – almost like it was someone else's, and her eyes shot daggers at Naruto's back. "Who the hell does he think he is?" she growled, to no one in particular.

No one answered.

A few weeks more and Sakura was nearly ready to call it quits. She wanted a team. A real one: one where both her team mates hung out with her, and neither of them pulled pranks on her, or laughed when she fell for them.

Actually, she was ready to cry. This wasn't like she'd thought it would be. Why was she even bothering? She was a horrible ninja! She never saw Naruto's pranks coming, and Shino's bugs scared her, and she couldn't hold her liquor like Mitarashi-sensei thought she should be able to.

She should just quit, like her parents wanted. At least it would mean being able to live without their disapproving stares every time she woke up with a hang over… like she had now… again.

She dragged herself to practice, not able to summon up more energy (or enthusiasm) than that. Mitarashi took one look at her, and pointed at a shady spot by the trees. "Sakura, Shino, sit this one out. Naruto, I'll work with you personally – your shadow clones need to start coordinating themselves, or you'll trip over your own feet."

Naruto seemed to both brighten up, and deflate – not that you could tell. The smile plastered on his face was already nearly painful to look at.

Sakura collapsed gratefully under the tree, and ignored Shino when he sat beside her. Not that he said anything to her, either. It was rather nice of him (_maybe,_ she thought, _or maybe he's just being a jerk_), because she was already wincing every time steel struck steel out where Naruto and Mitarashi-sensei were fighting.

He silently held out a hand to her – one that contained two small pills – and she abruptly decided that jerk or not, Shino was her favourite person in the world. And when he asked her to go out for drinks after training, he was her least favourite person in the world.

"Come on," he said in monotone. "You need to work on your tolerance, and there's something I have to talk to you about."

"Alright, fine," she growled, though this might mean _another_ fight with her parents about still wanting to be a ninja, and _another_ hangover in the morning. Just because her team mate _actually_ wanted to talk to her.

Training ended without her ever actually doing anything – not that that was disappointing: her headache had been gone by lunch, but she was still feeling tired, and a little sick, and wasn't at all loath to spend the day watching the clouds.

The bar Shino took her to was small, and semi private – with booths instead of tables, and waiters who only came around when you called, instead of when your glass was empty. The bouncer looked at them with raised eyebrows, but let them in when both Shino and Sakura brandished the cards that Mitarashi had given them. Sakura, having read hers the second it was given to her, knew that it was a Hokage signed waiver of the age limit, for training purposes.

Sakura wasn't sure if she should be appalled that their village leader was okay with twelve year olds getting drunk nearly every night, or glad that there was some way open to her, to please her teacher.

Shino sighed when he received his drink. She smiled nervously at the waitress, and thanked her with a small smile. "So what did you want to talk about?" she asked, gulping down the sake with a grimace.

"Slow down, first of all," he said. "I'd like it if you remember this, in the morning."

She shrugged. "Mitarashi-sensei says I need to work on my tolerance."

"I know, and you do," he answered, and she felt herself shrink under the criticism. "You also," he continued, "need to lay off Naruto."

"What?" she asked. Naruto was what he wanted to talk about?

"Stop planning 'team' events, stop calling him your team mate, and stop trying to impress him with how beautiful you are."

She flushed in anger. "He _is_ my team mate, and what does it matter to _you_ how I dress?"

Shino sighed again, and adjusted his sunglasses. "Do you remember that genin a few months back, who turned out to be a spy for a missing mist nin?"

"Of course," Sakura said, "everyone was talking about it. They said she was jounin level, and killed one of her team mates. Her other team mate had to kill her." Suddenly she knew what this had to do with not planning team events. "That was _Naruto's_ team?"

Oh. This changed every thing.

Shino nodded. "The story's basically right, but there are a few things wrong. First, Haku wasn't a woman. He was only pretending to be. It worked because he was the most beautiful person this village has ever seen, and smart enough not to be seen naked."

Oh. Then Naruto… _'You sure you're not a man in disguise?'_… He… wasn't insulting her?

"And I don't think it was Naruto who killed Haku. They were best friends in the Academy. I can't see Naruto killing anyone he knows, even if he hates them."

Oh.

"As for Haku being jounin level… possibly. He was always proficient, even if his test scores listed him as 'mediocre'. I always thought it was because he was lazy, like Shikamaru. I guess I was wrong about that."

"Oh. So he lost his team mates, and I'm…"

"He gets defensive every time you come around. He probably thinks"

"that I'm trying to replace them." Sakura had started crying. "That I'm saying he should forget them, or something."

Tears dribbled down her face. She wiped them away angrily. She would _not_ be a crybaby.

Shino shifted uncomfortably. "Sakura, are you drunk?"

"What?" she asked, startled. "No, not really. I mean, I'm a little tipsy, but I'm not _drunk_." At least, she hoped not. Six drinks was a lot, and that was, apparently (when she counted the number of glasses in front of her) how many she'd had.

Shino gave her a small smile. "You've already had more drinks than it took to make you drunk in Mitarashi-san's test," he noted, and Sakura's stopped, and she smiled.

"Good," she said.

A few days later, she thought she had a new plan of attack. One that wouldn't make Naruto think his team mates weren't worth anything anymore, just because he and a couple other people had been slapped with the label 'team'.

"Hey Naruto," she started.

"Yeah?" he prompted, grin wide enough to fool anybody who didn't know better – which Sakura did, now, thanks to Shino.

"Do you want to train together sometime? I'm having some trouble with my summoning, and you've already mastered it…"

He was looking at her, and it was making her uncomfortable. So what if she wasn't good at summoning? So what if it was hard, and all she kept getting was eggs? It wasn't like that made her a bad ninja.

"Sure," he answered. "And maybe you could help me think out strategies for my clones? The hag says you're really smart."

Sakura smiled. "Sure, I could do that."

She didn't mention that it was something team mates did.


End file.
